Bridges Trade BioRes • Volume 2 • Number 5 • 21st March 2002
UN Forest Forum: Delegates Discuss Trade and Certification
UN Forest Forum: Delegates Discuss Trade and Certification
Delegates at the Second Session of the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF-2) in New York (4-15 March), discussed, inter alia, the relevance of trade policies and certification systems in sustainable forest management. They, however, failed to finalise one of the main agenda items, namely to establish the terms of reference for three ad hoc expert groups on approaches and mechanisms for monitoring; assessment and reporting; and finance and transfer of environmentally sound technologies.
In their Decision on combating deforestation and forest degradation, delegates urged countries to promote sustainable forest management “through trade policies and practices, including in the WTO”, and “to negotiate in the context of the Doha Work Programme” in order to implement Intergovernmental Panel on Forests / Intergovernmental Forum on Forests (IPF/IFF) proposals for action. This compromise text was suggested by South Africa in an effort to resolve the disagreement between developing countries on the one side, who proposed the inclusion of references to the elimination of tariff and non-tariff barriers on forest products in the context of the WTO Doha agenda, and developed countries on the other side who were opposed to such references. The IPF/IFF proposals of action were prepared to support the efforts of UNFF in developing a plan of action for the implementation of IPF and IFF proposals, including financial provisions.
In their Ministerial Declaration, delegates also stressed the importance of voluntary certification schemes in achieving the objective of sustainable forest management. Several delegates pointed out, however, that such schemes should not be used as a barrier to trade for tropical timber. Malaysia’s Deputy Minister of Primary Industries, Datuk Anifah Aman, for instance, said that “unending allegations, attacks and misinterpretations” had led an increasing number of municipalities and local governments in developed countries to ban or restrict the use of tropical timber. “Timber certification should not be used as a non-tariff barrier, as it is against the principle of free trade,” he added. Issues related to certification were also discussed at a WTO side-event to UNFF-2, where the WTO Trade and Environment Division outlined how forestry may be relevant to the WTO. While the WTO membership had not made forestry a priority issue as yet, the secretariat representative pointed out that eco-labelling has been discussed more generally at the WTO Committee for Trade and Environment (CTE) and the CTE was mandated by the Doha Work Programme to give particular attention to labelling requirements for environmental purposes in its work (para. 32, iii).
At UNFF-3, to be held from 26 May to 6 June 2003 in Geneva, Switzerland, delegates will discuss, inter alia: means of implementation; progress in implementation, specifically related to economic aspects of forests, forest health and productivity, and maintaining forest cover to meet present and future needs; and common items. Furthermore discussion will focus on finalising the terms of reference of the three expert groups.
Why Is International Trade Important To Sustainable Forest Management?
The IPF/IFF has identified trade as one of the important tools for the implementation of sustainable forest management, as the buying and selling of wood and non-wood forest products and services has a significant effect on sustainable forest management, forest harvesting and the value of forest products. One of the main items of discussion in the context of international trade is certification/labelling of forest products. It has been suggested that certification might provide an incentive to manage forests sustainably, as products certified to come from sustainably managed forests might experience an increase in market share and suppliers might receive a price premium for selling a “green product”. The biggest market for certified products, both in terms of production and consumption, is found in Western Europe as developing countries often lack the resources to implement such schemes. As a result, many developing countries are concerned that their non-certified products might be discriminated against and that thus, certification and labelling schemes might constitute a non-tariff barrier to trade. Others, however, argue that certification schemes are usually voluntary and that countries are not forced to comply with them.
In the multilateral trading system, labelling is generally covered by the WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) which allows governments to introduce regulations if they are necessary to fulfil legitimate objectives, including “protection of human health or safety, animal or plant life or health, or the environment”. WTO rules also state that Members should give the same treatment to “like” products, i.e. they should not discriminate against a product on the basis of the process and production methods (PPMs) used. As eco-labelling schemes are often based on such PPM criteria (eg on sustainable forest management), some argue that they might not be compatible with WTO rules, at least in cases where they are mandatory. While to date no mandatory labelling scheme has been challenged at the WTO, the question of voluntary PPM-based eco-labelling was addressed in the context of the US-Tuna dispute where the GATT [General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade] Panel found that a voluntary US labelling scheme certifying that tuna was fished in a way not harmful to dolphins was compatible with trade rules. While the US-Tuna Panel Report was not adopted, it is likely to influence future discussions on this issue.
Additional Resources
“Trade and Sustainable Forest Management,” United Nations Economic and Social Council, E/CN.18/2002, Note by the Secretary-General, 2002.
“Trading Away the Last Ancient Forests,” Richard Tarasofsky and Stefanie Pfahl, Greenpeace International, 2002. A summary of this report is available at online. For hard copies or pdf version of the study contact juergen.knirsch@greenpeace.de.
For daily coverage, see IISD Linkages.
“Summary of the Second Session of the United Nations Forum on Forests,” ENB, 18 March 2002. “In-Session Seminar: Certification and Forest Product Labelling: A Review,” FAO, 2000 (FO:APFC/2000/10).